Planning a Teaching Sequence for the Teaching of Chemical Bonding

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Abstract
The current study seeks to examine how teachers plan teaching sequences to teach chemical bonding in the senior secondary phase of schooling. The study employs a learning demand tool as interpretive framework. A mixed method was used to guide the collection of data. Data were collected through a survey instrument with 227 practising physical science teachers and through follow-up interviews with 11 of these teachers. The findings indicate that physical science teachers are in agreement that the topic is difficult to teach and learn. They report using mainly curriculum documents rather than other resources such as textbooks to inform their decisions about sequencing. An encouraging sign is that many teachers, if given the choice, would use teaching sequences that are similar to those suggested by recent research, that is, bottom–up approaches starting with the microscopic (attractive forces between atoms) and then moving towards the macroscopic (substances and their properties). However, teachers do not appear to give learner everyday prior understandings or learning demands of their specific learners much attention when going about planning teaching sequences. Given the need to introduce evidence-based effective teaching sequences, the findings suggest that the most productive way would be through writing these sequences into curriculum documents rather than promoting these through other means such as continuous professional development programmes.

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